DOCSLIB.ORG

會稽: Guaiji? Guiji? Huiji? Kuaiji? Some Remarks on an Ancient Chinese Place-Name

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
會稽: Guaiji? Guiji? Huiji? Kuaiji? Some Remarks on an Ancient Chinese Place-Name SINO-PLATONIC PAPERS Number 234 March, 2013 會稽: Guaiji? Guiji? Huiji? Kuaiji? Some Remarks on an Ancient Chinese Place-Name by James M. Hargett Victor H. Mair, Editor Sino-Platonic Papers Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305 USA [email protected] www.sino-platonic.org SINO-PLATONIC PAPERS FOUNDED 1986 Editor-in-Chief VICTOR H. MAIR Associate Editors PAULA ROBERTS MARK SWOFFORD ISSN 2157-9679 (print) 2157-9687 (online) SINO-PLATONIC PAPERS is an occasional series dedicated to making available to specialists and the interested public the results of research that, because of its unconventional or controversial nature, might otherwise go unpublished. The editor-in-chief actively encourages younger, not yet well established, scholars and independent authors to submit manuscripts for consideration. Contributions in any of the major scholarly languages of the world, including romanized modern standard Mandarin (MSM) and Japanese, are acceptable. In special circumstances, papers written in one of the Sinitic topolects (fangyan) may be considered for publication. Although the chief focus of Sino-Platonic Papers is on the intercultural relations of China with other peoples, challenging and creative studies on a wide variety of philological subjects will be entertained. This series is not the place for safe, sober, and stodgy presentations. Sino- Platonic Papers prefers lively work that, while taking reasonable risks to advance the field, capitalizes on brilliant new insights into the development of civilization. Submissions are regularly sent out to be refereed, and extensive editorial suggestions for revision may be offered. Sino-Platonic Papers emphasizes substance over form. We do, however, strongly recommend that prospective authors consult our style guidelines at www.sino-platonic.org/stylesheet.doc. Manuscripts should be submitted as electronic files, preferably in Microsoft Word format. You may wish to use our sample document template, available here: www.sino-platonic.org/spp.dot. Beginning with issue no. 171, Sino-Platonic Papers has been published electronically on the Web at www.sino-platonic.org. Issues 1–170, however, will continue to be sold as paper copies until our stock runs out, after which they too will be made available on the Web. Please note: When the editor goes on an expedition or research trip, all operations (including filling orders) may temporarily cease for up to three months at a time. In such circumstances, those who wish to purchase various issues of SPP are requested to wait patiently until he returns. If issues are urgently needed while the editor is away, they may be requested through Interlibrary Loan. You should also check our Web site at www.sino-platonic.org, as back issues are regularly rereleased for free as PDF editions. Sino-Platonic Papers is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial- NoDerivs 2.5 License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, 543 Howard Street, 5th Floor, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA. 會稽: Guaiji? Guiji? Huiji? Kuaiji? Some Remarks on an Ancient Chinese Place-Name James M. Hargett The University at Albany, State University of New York First, some choice quotations selected to introduce the main issues addressed in this communication (note especially the terms I have put in bold print). These are followed by some brief observations and critical remarks from me (also in bold). “In [the spring of] his 8th year, he [the sage-emperor Yu 禹] assembled the princes at Hwuy-kʻe, .…” (八年春 , 會諸侯于會稽 ….) Source: James Legge et al., trans., The Annals of the Bamboo Books (Zhushu jinian 竹書紀年), in The Chinese Classics, The Shoo King (second ed., revised, 1935; rpt., Taibei: Wenshizhe chubanshe, 1971), 3:118. “The viscount of Yueh, with 5000 men armed with buff coats and shields, maintained himself on [the hill of] Kwei-k·e ….” (越子以甲楯五千保於會稽 ….) Source: James Legge et al., The Chinese Classics, The Ch’un Ts’ew with The Tso Chuen, 5:794. James M. Hargett, “會稽: Guaiji? Guiji? Huiji? Kuaiji?” Sino-Platonic Papers, 234 (March 2013) Same team of translators (Legge et al.), two different transliterations of the same place- name 會稽: Hwuy-kʻe [Pinyin = Huiji] and Kwei-k·e [Pinyin = Guiji]. “Note that the character 會 in the place-name 會稽, often erroneously read K’uai [Pinyin = Kuai] (cf. Zürcher, Conquest, and A. F. Wright’s “Hui-chiao’s ‘Lives of Eminent Monks’”, passim), is correctly read Kuei [Pinyin = Gui]. See Karlgren (4), series 321 and Gwoyeu Tsyrdean [= Guoyu cidian 國語辭典], vol. 3, p. 1388. For an explanation of the reading see TH [= Tz’u hai = Cihai 辭海], which gives however the spurious reading Kuai [Pinyin = Guai] ….” Source: J. D. Frodsham, The Murmuring Stream: The Life and Works of Hsieh Ling-yün (Kuala Lumpur: University of Malaya Press, 1967), 2:2, n. 12. Frodsham neglects to mention that 會 has several pronunciations, each with a different meaning; he also fails to explain how the gui reading relates to 會 in the place-name (nor does Bernhard Karlgren explain this in his Grammata Serica Rencensa). Caveat lector: glosses on the origins and meanings of ancient place-names in modern dictionaries like the Gwoyeu Tsyrdean, Ciyuan 辭源, Cihai, Dai Kan-Wa jiten 大漢和辭典, Zhongwen da cidian 中文大辭典, and Hanyu da cidian 漢語大詞典 are often unreliable and almost always incomplete. “[The Fang-chu [Pinyin = Fangzhu 方諸] Palace … lies 70,000 li southeast of Kuai-chi [Pinyin = Guaiji], that is, from the coast of Chekiang [Pinyin = Zhejiang 浙江].” Source: Edward H. Schafer, Mirages on the Sea of Time: The Taoist Poetry of Ts’ao T’ang (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1985). 112. Professor Schafer’s “Kuai-chi” [= Guaiji] transliteration for 會稽 is correct; well, sort of …. 2 James M. Hargett, “會稽: Guaiji? Guiji? Huiji? Kuaiji?” Sino-Platonic Papers, 234 (March 2013) “With a long history, Shaoxing 紹興 is a famous cultural city in China. Legend has it that after Yu the Great brought the flood under control, he met [t]here the feudal lords who were rewarded according to their contributions. By then Yu died and was buried on the spot. The place was named ‘Kuaiji’ after that event, for kuaiji 會稽 in Chinese means ‘reward people according to their merits’.” Source: Zhejiang Online, at http://www.zjol.com.cn/ehzzj/hdlxe/sx.htm (accessed 10 December 2012). The transliteration “Kuaiji” is “sort of correct” as well, but the definition of the place-name 會稽 in this passage is not accurate. 3 James M. Hargett, “會稽: Guaiji? Guiji? Huiji? Kuaiji?” Sino-Platonic Papers, 234 (March 2013) Abstract Uncertainty and disagreement in traditional Chinese sources concerning the meaning and “proper” pronunciation of the ancient place-name 會稽 has carried over into modern scholarship in China and into modern Western-language publications on China. Just some of the ways in which 會稽 has been transliterated into English include “Guaiji,” “Guiji,” “Huiji,” and “Kuaiji.” This essay seeks to explicate the semantic evolution and phonological history of the place-name 會稽 and thereby help to eliminate confusion about its source, meaning, and transliteration. 4 James M. Hargett, “會稽: Guaiji? Guiji? Huiji? Kuaiji?” Sino-Platonic Papers, 234 (March 2013) Most students of Chinese history and literature at some time or another have probably encountered the ancient place-name 會稽.1 It appears in several well-known texts that pre-date the Han 漢 dynasty (206 BCE – CE 220), including the Bamboo Annals (Zhushu jinian 竹書紀 年), Mountains and Seas Treatise (Shanhai jing 山海經), Dialogues of the States (Guoyu 國語), Han Feizi 韓非子, Mozi 墨子, and Mr. Lü’s Spring and Autumn [Annals] (Lüshi Chunqiu 呂氏春 秋),2 among others, as well as numerous poems and prose works composed during the Six Dynasties period (220–581) and thereafter. The writer-calligrapher Wang Xizhi’s 王羲之 (ca. 303 – ca. 361) famous “Orchid Pavilion” (Lanting 蘭亭) drinking party was held in 會稽 in 353, while the distinguished poet Xie Lingyun 謝靈運 (385–433) composed some of his best landscape (shanshui 山水) verse while living there in the fifth century. But the earliest textual citations to 會稽 (mainly, those dating from the Han period and before) all relate to the sage- ruler Yu 禹 (also called Da Yu 大禹, or Yu the Great), tamer of the great floods in remote antiquity and legendary founder of the Xia 夏 dynasty (traditional dates, ca. 2200–1760 BCE). Most of these sources agree on two general points: *I would like to express thanks to the following friends and colleagues in the field, all of whom read and commented on earlier versions of this essay: David P. Branner, W. South Coblin, Charles Hartman, Victor H. Mair, Axel Schuessler, Xu Yongming 徐永明, and Yan Zheng 嚴正. 1 For reasons that will soon become apparent, I will not suggest how to transliterate or “romanize” the place-name 會稽 until the conclusion of this essay. 2 The dating of the various ancient texts listed here is a complicated issue and far beyond the scope of this brief discussion. Suffice it to say that most China scholars today believe that these works (or parts of them) were composed in the pre-Han period. For reliable information on the dating of individual titles on this list, see the relevant entries in Michael Loewe, ed., Early Chinese Texts: A Bibliographical Guide (Berkeley: The Society for the Study of Early China and the Institute of East Asian Studies, 1993). Most pre-Han textual references to 會稽 are conveniently assembled by Zhang Zhongqing 張仲清 in his useful article “‘會稽’ xinshi” 會稽新釋, Shaoxing wenli xueyuan xuebao 紹興文理學院學報 23.2 (April 2003): 16. 5 James M. Hargett, “會稽: Guaiji? Guiji? Huiji? Kuaiji?” Sino-Platonic Papers, 234 (March 2013) 會稽 is the name of a hill or mountain (shan 山).3 Yu visited 會稽 during his reign as first emperor of the Xia dynasty.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • The Chinese Dragon Boat Festival Occurs on the 5Th Day of the 5Th Month of the Chinese Lunisolar Calendar and Lasts for Three Days
    Dragon Boat Festival The Chinese Dragon Boat Festival occurs on the 5th day of the 5th month of the Chinese lunisolar calendar and lasts for three days. This festival is also known as the Tuen Ng Festival, the Duanwu Festival, the Zhongxiao Festival, and the Double Fifth Festival. This holiday has been observed nationally for over 2,000 years. There are three different stories of whom this festival commemorates: Qu Yuan, Wu Zixu, and Cao E. The most well known story is about Qu Yuan, an ancient Chinese patriotic poet who was alive from 340-278 BCE. Qu Yuan was a minister in the state of Chu who wrote many poems to show his love and devotion for his country. He drowned himself in the river after he was exiled by the king because he didn’t want to see his country be invaded and conquered by the state of Qin. It is said that local people raced out in their boats to retrieve his body. When they couldn’t find his body, they dropped balls of sticky rice (zongzi) into the river so the fish would eat them and not Qu Yuan’s body. This was said to be the creation of zongzi, sticky rice dumplings or “Chinese tamales”. He died on the 5th day of the 5th month, thus the people created this festival to honor his death. The southeast region of Jiangsu (former territory of the state of Wu) commemorates Wu Zixu who was a Premier, a politician. Zixu warned his king, King Fuchai, of a dangerous plot regarding a beautiful woman, Xishi, who was sent by king Goujian of the state of Yue.
    [Show full text]
  • Bamboo Annals and Its Relation to Three Dynasties Chronology
    CONTROVERSY OVER THE “MODERN TEXT” BAMBOO ANNALS AND ITS RELATION TO THREE DYNASTIES CHRONOLOGY BY SHAO DONGFANG ⴳቺᅞ (Fo Guang University and Stanford University) Abstract In the ongoing effort to defi ne the exact nature of the Bamboo Annals and its relation to ancient Chinese chronology, scholars both Chinese and Western have debated the authenticity of this chronicle. The purpose of this paper is to present some of the ideas generated in an ongoing study of the Bamboo Annals by David Nivison and myself in the context of its textual history and dating information. The paper will begin with an ac- count of recent scholarship on the “Modern Text” and an introduction to new directions of research, and recent discoveries and controversies relative to this work. While many Chinese scholars have basically treated the “Modern Text” as a forgery, new studies by American scholars suggest that these Chinese scholars may have neglected intriguing aspects of the “Modern Text.” The thorough studies of the “Modern Text” by Chinese scholars have been supplemented by Nivison and Shaughnessy, whose fi ndings require the reconsideration of the importance of the “Modern Text.” Such studies allow claims for a close relationship between the two-chapter “Modern Text”—often held to be inauthentic—and the various collections of fragments known as the “ancient text” and that the “Modern Text” can actually give us important information for reconstructing chronologies of ancient China. This suggests a need to reconsider prevailing views of the “Modern Text.” The paper concludes with an assessment of the need for future work on the analysis of the Bamboo Annals.
    [Show full text]
  • The Towers of Yue Olivia Rovsing Milburn Abstract This Paper
    Acta Orientalia 2010: 71, 159–186. Copyright © 2010 Printed in Norway – all rights reserved ACTA ORIENTALIA ISSN 0001-6438 The Towers of Yue Olivia Rovsing Milburn Seoul National University Abstract This paper concerns the architectural history of eastern and southern China, in particular the towers constructed within the borders of the ancient non-Chinese Bai Yue kingdoms found in present-day southern Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong provinces. The skills required to build such structures were first developed by Huaxia people, and hence the presence of these imposing buildings might be seen as a sign of assimilation. In fact however these towers seem to have acquired distinct meanings for the ancient Bai Yue peoples, particularly in marking a strong division between those groups whose ruling houses claimed descent from King Goujian of Yue and those that did not. These towers thus formed an important marker of identity in many ancient independent southern kingdoms. Keywords: Bai Yue, towers, architectural history, identity, King Goujian of Yue Introduction This paper concerns the architectural history of eastern and southern China, in particular the relics of the ancient non-Chinese kingdoms found in present-day southern Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian and 160 OLIVIA ROVSING MILBURN Guangdong provinces. In the late Spring and Autumn period, Warring States era, and early Han dynasty these lands formed the kingdoms of Wu 吳, Yue 越, Minyue 閩越, Donghai 東海 and Nanyue 南越, in addition to the much less well recorded Ximin 西閩, Xiyue 西越 and Ouluo 甌駱.1 The peoples of these different kingdoms were all non- Chinese, though in the case of Nanyue (and possibly also Wu) the royal house was of Chinese origin.2 This paper focuses on one single aspect of the architecture of these kingdoms: the construction of towers.
    [Show full text]
  • An Analysis of the Death Mystery of Huo Qubing, a Famous Cavalry General in the Western Han Dynasty
    Journal of Frontiers of Society, Science and Technology DOI: 10.23977/jfsst.2021.010410 Clausius Scientific Press, Canada Volume 1, Number 4, 2021 An Analysis of the Death Mystery of Huo Qubing, a Famous Cavalry General in the Western Han Dynasty Liu Jifeng, Chen Mingzhi Shandong Maritime Vocational College, Weifang, 261000, Shandong, China Keywords: Huo qubing, Myth, Mysterious death Abstract: Throughout his whole lifetime, Huo Qubing created a myth of ancient war, and left an indelible mark in history. But, pitifully, he suddenly died during young age. His whole life was very short, and it seemed that Huo was born for war and died at the end of war. Although he implemented his great words and aspirations “What could be applied to get married, since the Huns haven’t been eliminated?”, and had no regrets for life, still, his mysterious death caused endless questions and intriguing reveries for later generations. 1. Introduction Huo Qubing, with a humble origin, was born in 140 B.C. in a single-parent family in Pingyang, Hedong County, which belongs to Linfen City, Shanxi Province now. He was an illegitimate child of Wei Shaoer, a female slave of Princess Pingyang Mansion, and Huo Zhongru, an inferior official. Also, he was a nephew-in-mother of Wei Qing, who was General-in-chief Serving as Commander-in-chief in the Western Han Dynasty. Huo Qubing was greatly influenced by his uncle Wei Qing. He was a famous military strategist and national hero during the period of Emperor Wudi of the Western Han Dynasty. He was fond of horse-riding and archery.
    [Show full text]
  • 2015/2016 Language Vib: Classical Chinese
    Language VIb: Classical Chinese 2015 - 2016 Language VIb: Classical Chinese 2015/2016 Code: 101559 ECTS Credits: 6 Degree Type Year Semester 2500244 East Asian Studies OB 3 2 Contact Use of languages Name: Anne Helene Suárez Girard Principal working language: spanish (spa) Email: [email protected] Some groups entirely in English: No Some groups entirely in Catalan: Yes Some groups entirely in Spanish: Yes Prerequisites The student must have previous knowledge of modern Chinese language, particularly concerning writing and syntax . Understand written texts on everyday topics . ( MCRE - FTI A2.2 . ) Produce written texts on everyday topics . ( MCRE - FTI A2.2 . ) Understand information from short oral texts. ( MCRE - FTI A1.2 . ) Produce short and simple oral texts. ( MCRE - FTI A1.2 . ) Objectives and Contextualisation The function of Xinès VIB: Xinès Clàssic is to provide students the basic knowledge of classical Chinese Language Studies. It is not a language intended for oral communication, but reserved the written since the beginning of Chinese writing Chinese literature until the early twentieth century communication. Even today many expressions and constructions are usual in modern llengua-oral or written-from the classical language. Therefore, this course aims to provide students with knowledge of Fonètica structures morphologically, semantics, gender and discourse in classical Chinese Language Studies. At the same time, Xinès VIB: Xinès Clàssic is designed to provide students with important knowledge to enhance their understanding and use of modern Chinese Language Studies, as well as those already mentioned, are other character socio-historical-cultural they can be extremely useful for understanding many of the cultures of East Asia.
    [Show full text]
  • Gateless Gate Has Become Common in English, Some Have Criticized This Translation As Unfaithful to the Original
    Wú Mén Guān The Barrier That Has No Gate Original Collection in Chinese by Chán Master Wúmén Huìkāi (1183-1260) Questions and Additional Comments by Sŏn Master Sǔngan Compiled and Edited by Paul Dōch’ŏng Lynch, JDPSN Page ii Frontspiece “Wú Mén Guān” Facsimile of the Original Cover Page iii Page iv Wú Mén Guān The Barrier That Has No Gate Chán Master Wúmén Huìkāi (1183-1260) Questions and Additional Comments by Sŏn Master Sǔngan Compiled and Edited by Paul Dōch’ŏng Lynch, JDPSN Sixth Edition Before Thought Publications Huntington Beach, CA 2010 Page v BEFORE THOUGHT PUBLICATIONS HUNTINGTON BEACH, CA 92648 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. COPYRIGHT © 2010 ENGLISH VERSION BY PAUL LYNCH, JDPSN NO PART OF THIS BOOK MAY BE REPRODUCED OR TRANSMITTED IN ANY FORM OR BY ANY MEANS, GRAPHIC, ELECTRONIC, OR MECHANICAL, INCLUDING PHOTOCOPYING, RECORDING, TAPING OR BY ANY INFORMATION STORAGE OR RETRIEVAL SYSTEM, WITHOUT THE PERMISSION IN WRITING FROM THE PUBLISHER. PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA BY LULU INCORPORATION, MORRISVILLE, NC, USA COVER PRINTED ON LAMINATED 100# ULTRA GLOSS COVER STOCK, DIGITAL COLOR SILK - C2S, 90 BRIGHT BOOK CONTENT PRINTED ON 24/60# CREAM TEXT, 90 GSM PAPER, USING 12 PT. GARAMOND FONT Page vi Dedication What are we in this cosmos? This ineffable question has haunted us since Buddha sat under the Bodhi Tree. I would like to gracefully thank the author, Chán Master Wúmén, for his grace and kindness by leaving us these wonderful teachings. I would also like to thank Chán Master Dàhuì for his ineptness in destroying all copies of this book; thankfully, Master Dàhuì missed a few so that now we can explore the teachings of his teacher.
    [Show full text]
  • Introduction
    Introduction In March 1949, when Mao Zedong set out for Beijing from Xibaipo, the remote village where he had lived for the previous ten months, he took along four printed texts. Included were the Shiji (Records of the Grand Historian, c. 100 BCE) and the Zizhi tongjian (Comprehensive Mirror for Aid in Government, c. 1050 CE), two works that had been studied for centuries by emperors, statesmen, and would-be conquerors. Along with these two historical works, Mao packed two modern Chinese dictionaries, Ciyuan (The Encyclopedic Dictionary, first published by the Commercial Press in 1915) and Cihai (Ocean of Words, issued by Zhonghua Books in 1936- 37).1 If the two former titles, part of the standard repertoire regularly re- printed by both traditional and modern Chinese publishers, are seen as key elements of China’s broadly based millennium-old print culture, then the presence of the two latter works symbolizes the singular intellectual and political importance of two modern industrialized publishing firms. Together with scores of other innovative Shanghai-based printing and publishing enterprises, these two corporations shaped and standardized modern Chi- nese language and thought, both Mao’s and others’, using Western-style printing and publishing operations of the sort commonly traced to Johann Gutenberg.2 As Mao, who had once organized a printing workers’ union, understood, modern printing and publishing were unimaginable without the complex of revolutionary technologies invented by Gutenberg in the fifteenth century. At its most basic level, the Gutenberg revolution involved the adaptation of mechanical processes to the standardization and duplication of texts using movable metal type and the printing press.
    [Show full text]
  • Downloaded from Brill.Com10/04/2021 08:34:09AM Via Free Access Bruce Rusk: Old Scripts, New Actors 69
    EASTM 26 (2007): 68-116 Old Scripts, New Actors: European Encounters with Chinese Writing, 1550-1700* Bruce Rusk [Bruce Rusk is Assistant Professor of Chinese Literature in the Department of Asian Studies at Cornell University. From 2004 to 2006 he was Mellon Humani- ties Fellow in the Asian Languages Department at Stanford University. His dis- sertation was entitled “The Rogue Classicist: Feng Fang and his Forgeries” (UCLA, 2004) and his article “Not Written in Stone: Ming Readers of the Great Learning and the Impact of Forgery” appeared in The Harvard Journal of Asi- atic Studies 66.1 (June 2006).] * * * But if a savage or a moon-man came And found a page, a furrowed runic field, And curiously studied line and frame: How strange would be the world that they revealed. A magic gallery of oddities. He would see A and B as man and beast, As moving tongues or arms or legs or eyes, Now slow, now rushing, all constraint released, Like prints of ravens’ feet upon the snow. — Herman Hesse1 Visitors to the Far East from early modern Europe reported many marvels, among them a writing system unlike any familiar alphabetic script. That the in- habitants of Cathay “in a single character make several letters that comprise one * My thanks to all those who provided feedback on previous versions of this paper, especially the workshop commentator, Anthony Grafton, and Liam Brockey, Benjamin Elman, and Martin Heijdra as well as to the Humanities Fellows at Stanford. I thank the two anonymous readers, whose thoughtful comments were invaluable in the revision of this essay.
    [Show full text]
  • Mandarin Chinese: an Annotated Bibliography of Self-Study Materials Duncan E
    University of South Carolina Scholar Commons Faculty Publications Law School 2007 Mandarin Chinese: An Annotated Bibliography of Self-Study Materials Duncan E. Alford University of South Carolina - Columbia, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarcommons.sc.edu/law_facpub Part of the Legal Profession Commons, Legal Writing and Research Commons, and the Library and Information Science Commons Recommended Citation Duncan E. Alford, Mandarin Chinese: An Annotated Bibliography of Self-Study Materials, 35 Int'l J. Legal Info. 537 (2007) This Article is brought to you by the Law School at Scholar Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Faculty Publications by an authorized administrator of Scholar Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Mandarin Chinese: An Annotated Bibliography of Self- Study Materials DUNCAN E. ALFORD The People's Republic of China is currently the seventh largest economy in the world and is projected to be the largest economy by 2050. Commensurate with its growing economic power, the PRC is using its political power more frequently on the world stage. As a result of these changes, interest in China and its legal system is growing among attorneys and academics. International law librarians similarly are seeing more researchers interested in China, its laws and economy. The principal language of China, Mandarin Chinese, is considered a difficult language to learn. The Foreign Service Institute has rated Mandarin as "exceptionally difficult for English speakers to learn." Busy professionals such as law librarians find it very difficult to learn additional languages despite their usefulness in their careers.
    [Show full text]
  • The Rise of Agricultural Civilization in China: the Disparity Between Archeological Discovery and the Documentary Record and Its Explanation
    SINO-PLATONIC PAPERS Number 175 December, 2006 The Rise of Agricultural Civilization in China: The Disparity between Archeological Discovery and the Documentary Record and Its Explanation by Zhou Jixu Center for East Asian Studies, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Chinese Department, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, Sichuan Victor H. Mair, Editor Sino-Platonic Papers Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305 USA [email protected] www.sino-platonic.org SINO-PLATONIC PAPERS is an occasional series edited by Victor H. Mair. The purpose of the series is to make available to specialists and the interested public the results of research that, because of its unconventional or controversial nature, might otherwise go unpublished. The editor actively encourages younger, not yet well established, scholars and independent authors to submit manuscripts for consideration. Contributions in any of the major scholarly languages of the world, including Romanized Modern Standard Mandarin (MSM) and Japanese, are acceptable. In special circumstances, papers written in one of the Sinitic topolects (fangyan) may be considered for publication. Although the chief focus of Sino-Platonic Papers is on the intercultural relations of China with other peoples, challenging and creative studies on a wide variety of philological subjects will be entertained. This series is not the place for safe, sober, and stodgy presentations. Sino-Platonic Papers prefers lively work that, while taking reasonable risks to advance the field, capitalizes on brilliant new insights into the development of civilization. The only style-sheet we honor is that of consistency. Where possible, we prefer the usages of the Journal of Asian Studies.
    [Show full text]
  • The Phonological Domain of Tone in Chinese: Historical Perspectives
    THE PHONOLOGICAL DOMAIN OF TONE IN CHINESE: HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES by Yichun Dai B. A. Nanjing University, 1982 THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGRFE OF MASTER OF ARTS In the pepartment of Linguistics @ Yichun Dai 1991 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY July 1991 All rights reserved. This work may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without permission of the author. APPROVAL NAME: Yichun Dai DEGREE: Master of Arts (Linguistics) TITLE OF THESIS : The Phonological Domain of Tone in Chinese: Historical Perspectives EXAMINING COMMITTEE: Chairman: Dr. R. C. DeArmond ----------- Dr. T. A. Perry, Senior ~aisor Dr. N. J. Lincoln - ................................... J A. Edmondson, Professor, Department of foreign Languages and Linguistics, University of Texas at Arlington, External Examiner PARTIAL COPYR l GHT L l CENSE I hereby grant to Simon Fraser University the right to lend my thesis, project or extended essay (the title of which is shown below) to users of the Simon Fraser University L ibrary, and to make partial or single copies only for such users or in response to a request from the library of any other university, or other educational institution, on its own behalf or for one of its users. I further agree that permission for multiple copying of this work for scholarly purposes may be granted by me or the Dean of Graduate Studies. It is understood that copying or publication of this work for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Title of Thesis/Project/Extended Essay Author: (signature) (name 1 Abstract This thesis demonstrates how autosegmental licensing theory operates in Chinese.
    [Show full text]
  • Self-Study Syllabus on Chinese Foreign Policy
    Self-Study Syllabus on Chinese Foreign Policy www.mandarinsociety.org PrefaceAbout this syllabus with China’s rapid economic policymakers in Washington, Tokyo, Canberra as the scale and scope of China’s current growth, increasing military and other capitals think about responding to involvement in Africa, China’s first overseas power,Along and expanding influence, Chinese the challenge of China’s rising power. military facility in Djibouti, or Beijing’s foreign policy is becoming a more salient establishment of the Asian Infrastructure concern for the United States, its allies This syllabus is organized to build Investment Bank (AIIB). One of the challenges and partners, and other countries in Asia understanding of Chinese foreign policy in that this has created for observers of China’s and around the world. As China’s interests a step-by-step fashion based on one hour foreign policy is that so much is going on become increasingly global, China is of reading five nights a week for four weeks. every day it is no longer possible to find transitioning from a foreign policy that was In total, the key readings add up to roughly one book on Chinese foreign policy that once concerned principally with dealing 800 pages, rarely more than 40–50 pages will provide a clear-eyed assessment of with the superpowers, protecting China’s for a night. We assume no prior knowledge everything that a China analyst should know. regional interests, and positioning China of Chinese foreign policy, only an interest in as a champion of developing countries, to developing a clearer sense of how China is To understanding China’s diplomatic history one with a more varied and global agenda.
    [Show full text]